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A review by jaredkwheeler
Shadows of the Empire by Steve Perry
4.0
Star Wars Legends Project #286
Background: Shadows of the Empire was written by [a:Steve Perry|6262|Steve Perry|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1463048818p2/6262.jpg] and published in May of 1996. Perry also co-wrote 3 Star Wars novels with Michael Reaves. This novel is the central pillar of a wide-ranging Star Wars multimedia blitz, envisioned as a "movie project without the movie." George Lucas had originally planned to release the Special Editions of the original trilogy in 1996, followed by the launch of his prequel trilogy the following year, but when that was delayed, this was the project that stepped in to fill that gap, along with the narrative gap between The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi.
This story takes place in the weeks leading up to the beginning of, 3-4 years after the battle of Yavin. The main characters are Luke Skywalker, Leia Organa, Lando Calrissian, Chewbacca, Darth Vader, R2-D2, C-3PO, etc. There are also major roles for Prince Xizor, Emperor Palpatine, Boba Fett, Dash Rendar, Wedge Antilles, etc. The story takes place on Tatooine, Bothawui, Coruscant, and various other planets and points in space.
Summary: The Rebellion's greatest heroes race to intercept Boba Fett before he can deliver Han Solo to Jabba the Hutt, all unknowing that a noose is slowly tightening around them. Prince Xizor, ruthless Falleen leader of the infamous Black Sun criminal organization, has learned that Darth Vader seeks to capture Luke Skywalker alive at the Emperor's request. As Vader's chief rival for the Emperor's favor, Xizor senses a golden opportunity. If he can somehow ensure Vader's failure by killing Skywalker, without any links leading back to him, he might just supplant the Dark Lord of the Sith as the Emperor's most trusted confidante. And the one person Luke won't hesitate to come for is seeking an audience with him . . .
Review: There are any number of reasons why this novel should not work; or, rather, reasons why it might not work. Because it takes place right before Return of the Jedi, we already know the outcome of the major dramatic threads: We know the plans to rescue Han Solo before he reaches Jabba will fail. We know Luke Skywalker will not be assassinated. And that's without even mentioning the difficulty of retroactively setting up a story that's already been told without it feeling contrived. Additionally, the main villain, Prince Xizor, is a brand-new character that we've never heard of before this, but who thinks he's on a level with Darth frickin' Vader. Finally, Dash Rendar is flagrantly a Han Solo knockoff character, intended to fill the same role in the story but without any of Han's character growth from the first 2 films, or (frankly) his charisma.
But somehow, none of that actually manages to derail it all. This actually kind of feels of a piece with the original trilogy, in that it feels like a fun adventure with all of the characters we love (well, at least the ones who are around) in the midst of the time when we know them best. Luke is still honing his Jedi powers (and this has some of my favorite descriptions of a Jedi experiencing the Force). Leia is still grappling with the realization that she loves Han while dealing with his loss. Lando is struggling to redeem the choices he made that helped land them where they are. And Xizor is actually a good villain because they don't try to make him another Vader, or even someone who could stand up to Vader in a fight. He's a different kind of villain, a different kind of evil, and a great complement to our main antagonists from the movies.
The one thing that's never made any sense to me about Xizor is that he's always described as very attractive, but I've never seen one piece of art that even tries to make him look anything other than off-putting to the point of being creepy. Which, speaking of . . . Maybe this is just the sort of thing that hasn't aged well, but I feel like it was a very questionable choice to give him the ability to exude the date rape drug into the air around him. Like, yeah he's the bad guy, but . . . too far. I don't love that the big tension in Leia's storyline isn't whether she's in physical danger, but whether she'll "sully her virtue" or whatever by boning Xizor under the effects of mind control. Pretty gross. There's a similar sensibility in Xizor's chief lieutenant being a Human replica droid who can murder anyone easily with her bare hands . . . and who also happens to be a very particular type of blonde bombshell mega-hottie. (Replica droids, incidentally, are not a piece of technology that's ever referred to in any of the films, and only rarely in any other novel or comic because it's so out-of-step with the Star Wars universe. It's not an idea that plays nicely with others in this particular sandbox.)
Still, a few icky details aside, I really like this, both as a story and in the way it fills the gap between the movies. It's definitely worthwhile.
A-
Background: Shadows of the Empire was written by [a:Steve Perry|6262|Steve Perry|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1463048818p2/6262.jpg] and published in May of 1996. Perry also co-wrote 3 Star Wars novels with Michael Reaves. This novel is the central pillar of a wide-ranging Star Wars multimedia blitz, envisioned as a "movie project without the movie." George Lucas had originally planned to release the Special Editions of the original trilogy in 1996, followed by the launch of his prequel trilogy the following year, but when that was delayed, this was the project that stepped in to fill that gap, along with the narrative gap between The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi.
This story takes place in the weeks leading up to the beginning of
Summary: The Rebellion's greatest heroes race to intercept Boba Fett before he can deliver Han Solo to Jabba the Hutt, all unknowing that a noose is slowly tightening around them. Prince Xizor, ruthless Falleen leader of the infamous Black Sun criminal organization, has learned that Darth Vader seeks to capture Luke Skywalker alive at the Emperor's request. As Vader's chief rival for the Emperor's favor, Xizor senses a golden opportunity. If he can somehow ensure Vader's failure by killing Skywalker, without any links leading back to him, he might just supplant the Dark Lord of the Sith as the Emperor's most trusted confidante. And the one person Luke won't hesitate to come for is seeking an audience with him . . .
Review: There are any number of reasons why this novel should not work; or, rather, reasons why it might not work. Because it takes place right before Return of the Jedi, we already know the outcome of the major dramatic threads: We know the plans to rescue Han Solo before he reaches Jabba will fail. We know Luke Skywalker will not be assassinated. And that's without even mentioning the difficulty of retroactively setting up a story that's already been told without it feeling contrived. Additionally, the main villain, Prince Xizor, is a brand-new character that we've never heard of before this, but who thinks he's on a level with Darth frickin' Vader. Finally, Dash Rendar is flagrantly a Han Solo knockoff character, intended to fill the same role in the story but without any of Han's character growth from the first 2 films, or (frankly) his charisma.
But somehow, none of that actually manages to derail it all. This actually kind of feels of a piece with the original trilogy, in that it feels like a fun adventure with all of the characters we love (well, at least the ones who are around) in the midst of the time when we know them best. Luke is still honing his Jedi powers (and this has some of my favorite descriptions of a Jedi experiencing the Force). Leia is still grappling with the realization that she loves Han while dealing with his loss. Lando is struggling to redeem the choices he made that helped land them where they are. And Xizor is actually a good villain because they don't try to make him another Vader, or even someone who could stand up to Vader in a fight. He's a different kind of villain, a different kind of evil, and a great complement to our main antagonists from the movies.
The one thing that's never made any sense to me about Xizor is that he's always described as very attractive, but I've never seen one piece of art that even tries to make him look anything other than off-putting to the point of being creepy. Which, speaking of . . . Maybe this is just the sort of thing that hasn't aged well, but I feel like it was a very questionable choice to give him the ability to exude the date rape drug into the air around him. Like, yeah he's the bad guy, but . . . too far. I don't love that the big tension in Leia's storyline isn't whether she's in physical danger, but whether she'll "sully her virtue" or whatever by boning Xizor under the effects of mind control. Pretty gross. There's a similar sensibility in Xizor's chief lieutenant being a Human replica droid who can murder anyone easily with her bare hands . . . and who also happens to be a very particular type of blonde bombshell mega-hottie. (Replica droids, incidentally, are not a piece of technology that's ever referred to in any of the films, and only rarely in any other novel or comic because it's so out-of-step with the Star Wars universe. It's not an idea that plays nicely with others in this particular sandbox.)
Still, a few icky details aside, I really like this, both as a story and in the way it fills the gap between the movies. It's definitely worthwhile.
A-